The owner of a St. Rose convenience store was arrested after authorities say he set fire to his store twice in order to collect a $1 million insurance policy.
Both fires occurred within a month of each other.
Nam Pham, 26, is the owner of the Quick and Fast Convenience Store, which is located at 11734 River Road and is a block west of St. Rose Avenue.
Pham is charged with one count of criminal conspiracy and two counts of arson with the intent to defraud.
Demorial Hicks, 30, was also arrested in connection with the fires and charged with one count of criminal conspiracy with the intent to defraud.
The St. Rose Volunteer Fire Department responded to separate fires at the convenience store, with the first occurring on Nov. 27 last year. In that instance, a fire was set outside the building and damaged the exterior, according to state Fire Marshal H. “Butch” Browning.
The second fire occurred less than a month later on Dec. 5 and caused significant damage to the inside of the building, making it uninhabitable, he added.
Pham is accused of setting the fire in an attempt to defraud his insurers. The store held a $1 million policy issued by State Farm.
“This fire had the potential to pay a large amount of money to a fraudulent claim. When people defraud insurance companies we all pay and it is not right,” Browning said.
The state Fire Marhsal’s Office worked with the St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office and the Louisiana Department of Probation and Parole to investigate the fires.
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